DECEASED – Richard William Taylor, 42, was killed by a homeowner when, earlier in the day, under a ruse to use the homeowner’s telephone, he and three accomplices later broke into the home at night… and was then shot & killed by the homeowner as they broke into the home. May the shithead rot in HADES, and may his grave be urinated upon by mangy coyotes. Scumbag Piece Of Shit

Richard William Taylor was slain Monday as he attempted a home invasion in Owens Cross Roads, according to investigators, and his three accomplices have been charged with murder in his death.

None of the three pulled the trigger of the gun that killed Taylor, 42, but they are all being held responsible for his slaying. Those arrested are Jeremy Floyd Jones, 29; Audra Lynn Anderson Ikard, 42; and Brandi Michelle Seagroves, 26.

Ikard was Taylor’s girlfriend, said Sgt. Brian Chaffin of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

All three are charged with murder, robbery, burglary and criminal mischief in the case. Jones is also charged with theft of property stemming from a similar incident the week before.

Chaffin said the foursome went to the home of the victim, located in the 100 block of Plainview Drive, earlier in the day on Monday asking to use her phone. She refused to let them inside.

They returned around 9:30 p.m. that night and forced their way in, Chaffin said.

The homeowner, who was alone when they broke in, pulled out a gun and started firing.

Taylor died of multiple gunshot wounds, said Madison County Coroner Bobby Berryhill.

Jones, Ikard and Seagroves fled the scene, but the women were tracked down Tuesday and questioned. Investigators then began looking for Jones, who was arrested Tuesday night with the help of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.

Jeremy Floyd Jones, 29, is charged with murder. This loser just looks mad, doesn’t he? Now, he’ll REALLY be a life-time LOSER. Too bad he wasn’t killed by the homeowner.

Chaffin said the additional theft charge against Jones stems from an incident last week in which he allegedly asked to use a person’s phone and, while inside the home, stole credit cards from the victim.

“If you do not know a person standing at your front door, do not let them in,” Chaffin said.

He said the suspects were acquainted with the homeowner, but the relationship was not clear.

Brandy Michelle Seagroves, 26, was along for the ride that night, when SUDDENLY! the dick-head shit-for-brains ringleader was shot & killed by the homeowner as they all were in the process of breaking into the homeowner’s house around 9:30PM.

He said while the investigation is ongoing, investigators believe the homeowner was in fear for her life when she shot Taylor.

“At this time, we don’t think any charges will be filed (against her),” Chaffin said.

Alabama law allows a person to be charged with murder if a death occurs in the course of committing, attempting to commit or fleeing the commission of any of a number of serious crimes, including arson, burglary, escape, kidnapping, rape, robbery, sodomy or “any other felony clearly dangerous to human life.”

Jones, Ikard and Seagroves are being held in the Madison County jail in lieu of $135,000 bond each. Jones has an additionl $2,500 bond for the theft charge.

Both Jones and Taylor have a history of arrests, including burglary charges. Jones in 2004 was sentenced to 10 years in prison for burglary, the sentence suspended upon his successful completion of a boot camp program, court records show.

During the burglary for which he was convicted, he was armed with a shotgun.

Jones also was convicted in 2010 on drug charges and given a 13 year sentence. That sentence was also suspended and he was given five years’ probation, which expires in March of this year.

He violated that probation this past September by failing drug tests and failing to pay his court-ordered fines. He was ordered to serve 90 days in jail and begin paying the money he owed through the Madison County District Attorney’s Office’s Restitution Recovery Unit.

Taylor was arrested in September 1991 and charged with burglary, theft and receiving stolen property. He pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property and was sentenced to two years.

At their quarterly board meeting, the Board of Directors for the Tennessee Valley Authority moved Thursday, February 12, 2015, to adopt resolutions which would allow TVA President and CEO Bill Johnson to:

Establish a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with NextEra for electricity from its planned 80MW solar farm in Lauderdale County, AL. The installation would be significantly larger than any existing solar facility in the Tennessee Valley.

and

Acquire for $340 Million Quantum Utility Generation’s Choctaw combined cycle Natural Gas (NatGas) plant near Ackerman, MS. TVA has been buying power from the 760MW plant since 2008. This would be TVA’s sixth combined cycle plant, with two more under construction, all since 2007.

Confidential terms of the agreements were not released.

Concerning the NatGas plant, Mr. Johnson said, “We can purchase the gas plant for substantially less than it would cost to build one, and the solar power is at a price competitive with other energy sources.”

The board unanimously approved the purchase of Quantum Utility Generation’s 760MW Choctaw combined-cycle power plant near Ackerman, MS, for about $340mn, or $447/kW, half the cost to build a new gas plant, according TVA Chief Operating Officer Charles Pardee.

TVA has bought most of the output of the Choctaw gas plant since 2008. If the deal closes, Choctaw will be the sixth combined-cycle gas plant TVA has purchased or built since 2007. Two more combined cycle plants are under construction.

Since 2007, TVA has built or bought five combined-cycle gas plants with 3,900 megawatts of capacity. In the past year, the agency has approved construction of two more gas plants to replace aging coal-fired plants.

He also noted that TVA has created “27,400 jobs and about $2.8 Billion in capital investments for the region so far this year.” Over the past five years, TVA’s total Economic Development Impact has been about 300,000 jobs and $35 Billion in capital investment.

The facility will be built near TVA’s Colbert Fossil Plant, which TVA is retiring in 2016. Johnson said the location will allow the solar facility to take advantage of the existing transmission system.

The NextEra Energy Resources River Bend Solar facility would be built on a 600-acre tract of land known as the Dillehunt Farm in the western part of Lauderdale county off Lauderdale County Road 62 near the Oakland community.

Location showing area of NextEra/TVA Solar Energy facility in Lauderdale County, Alabama off County Road 62

Dan Gibbs, Senior Rates and System Planning Engineer at Decatur Utilities, said an 80 MW solar power facility would produce about 7.3% of the net capacity of one unit at TVA’s Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant. Each of the plant’s three units has a 1,100 MW capacity.

TVA will pay about $61 per MWh over the 20-year life of the agreement, which is competitive with the $59 per megawatt-hour the utility expects to pay for energy at a Quantum Choctaw natural gas power plant at Ackerman, MS.

The NextEra contract starts at $42/MWh and escalates 5%/year during the contract.

In comparison, round-the-clock assessments for the 2016-20 calendar strips average $36/MWh in the Virginia-Carolinas sub-region to the east of TVA and $31/MWh in Southern Co’s service territory, to the south of TVA.

Director Virginia Lodge, who said she supports TVA’s increased use of solar power, voted against the NextEra contract because it was not part of a competitive bidding process.

TVA is nation’s largest public utility, and currently has 128MW of operating solar installations, which are mostly small installations. Chief Operating Office Chip Pardee said this will be TVA’s first solar installation that produces more than 20MW, and will pay about $61 per megawatt-hour over the life of the agreement.

Including the hydro power generated from TVA’s 29 power generating dams, TVA got only 13% of its generation last year from renewable sources.

TVA is buying the power from New Era because as a private company New Era will qualify for 30 percent investment tax credits under the federal tax code incentives for solar power. As a federal corporation, TVA does not benefit by such tax credits. Mr. Johnson said as long as such federal tax credits are available for solar generation, it will be cheaper for TVA to buy power from other generators than to build its own solar facilities.

Stephen Smith, Executive Director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy said solar power “is an important resource for our region’s economic and job growth and it needs to be more fully incorporated into TVA’s system. Alabama has tremendous solar potential, and we welcome this positive development.”

NextEra Energy Resources, LLC operates in 22 states, and Canada, and is the largest generator in the United States of renewable energy from the wind and sun, and as of the end of 2011, owned and operated approximately 8,569 megawatts of wind and 158 megawatts of solar power generation. NextEra Energy Resources is a subsidiary of the Juno Beach, FL-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE).

Recently, Google signed a PPA with NextEra to provide 43 MegaWatts (MW) through their Golden Hills wind farm, located near Livermore, CA, to supply their North Bayshore building in Mountain View.

In his view, Marriage Equality under the law in Alabama is NOT the issue under discussion.

When pressed by host Cuomo, Moore said, “It’s about sexual preference overcoming an institution which has existed in our state, in our United States, for centuries, and I think it’s wrong.”

Alabama Supreme Court Chief Jester Roy Moore

Clearly, Chief Jester Moore doesn’t “prefer” those with Same Sex Attraction, and by his own confession, seeks to intrude upon their private lives. That is, he seeks to tell others what they should (or should not) do in their own privacy. Why he has such an excessive interest in them is indeed quizzical, if not outright disturbing.

There continues to be a disturbing dichotomy in Alabama law, which, on one hand, dares to “defend our rights,” (the state motto is “Audemus jura nostra defendere“ translated from Latin as “We dare defend our rights”) while simultaneously intruding upon, and violating the rights of others… simply because someone else doesn’t like them. It is indeed a disturbingly quizzical self-centeredness which seeks to tell others what they can, and cannot do in the privacy of their own abodes.

For example, in the Code of Alabama 1975, as amended, the Criminal Code – Title 13 – contains a well-known (though now-rarely enforced) law, which in part states:

(a)(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly distribute, possess with intent to distribute, or offer or agree to distribute any obscene material or any device designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs for any thing of pecuniary value.

Ladies, if you own any “device designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs,” you are in violation of Alabama’s Criminal Code. And, if you are arrested & charged with such violation, upon conviction, you are “guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and may also be imprisoned in the county jail or sentenced to hard labor for the county for not more than one year. A second or subsequent violation of this subdivision is a Class C felony if the second or subsequent violation occurs after a conviction has been obtained for a previous violation.”

Earlier, in a column entitled “Is Roy Moore protesting too much?” published February 8, 2015, Kyle Whitmire, Political Commentator for the Alabama Media Group (AL.com) intimated Roy Moore might be a self-loathing closeted homosexual – much like Republican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham – by writing “…there is only one question left for me. Is he a gay?”

Nevertheless…

There is a word which describes a condition when one habitually intrudes upon the privacy of another, and it is called “voyeurism.”

Voyeurism is a Paraphilic Disorder characterized by a inordinately strong “recurrent and persistent tendency” to observe others in a state of disrobing, or engaged in sexual activity, most often without their knowledge. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV-TR, it is differentiated from normal sexual arousal which may occur when seeing others engaged in amorous activity. The ICD-10 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision) category is “Disorders of adult personality and behaviour,” subcategory 65 “Disorders of sexual preference” and the specific medical diagnostic code for Voyeurism is F65.3, which states “A recurrent or persistent tendency to look at people engaging in sexual or intimate behaviour such as undressing. This is carried out without the observed people being aware, and usually leads to sexual excitement and masturbation.”

Increasingly, I am convinced that Alabama Supreme Court Chief Jester Roy Moore is a sad, sexually repressed man whose malformed sexual identity results in the abuse of others in much the same was as the Taliban abuses women.

I was run off the road while riding my 10-speed bicycle.

It happened in a residential part of town, very near home, and upon one of the widest roads in town…

Capable of 4 lanes of 2-way traffic, with parallel parking along both sides, the road also ran adjacent the football stadium & high school.

I loved to ride my bicycle, and would do so almost daily, for at least five miles. And that was long before the song “Bicycle” by Queen was popularized. In fact, it was upon a “road bike” much like the ones seen in the video below.

Recollecting that time in my youth, it was an afternoon, during summer, as best I recall, and I was returning home from a jaunt.

Upon my return, and very near home, I was run off the road by one such man whom could be described as an “in-bred, rat bastard scumbag, mouth-breathing POS with 2 brain cells.” He was then a very good example why cyclists should “Stand Your Ground.”

Riding as far to the right as practicable (as state law requires cyclists to do), on that widest of roads, he ran me off the road – which means, he had to slow to my speed, and veer ever closer to the right, and the continue so doing until I very nearly crashed by running into the curbing. Thankfully, I stopped before I crashed.

He then proceeded to drive a short distance ahead, stop, get out of his car, and walk back toward me, and in an angry and very loud tone of voice, berated me about riding a bicycle on the road, claiming that “the road is for cars.” He then threatened to hit me with his car if he ever saw me again. It must take a very special type of man human being to use a one-ton car to deliberately run off the road a teenager riding a bicycle.

I was so shaken by his attack, that, even though I may have made a mental note of his automobile tag number (license plate), in the short distance to home, I forgot it, and didn’t file a police report.

Of course, I knew then he was an ignoramus bigot, because I knew the law (and whether or not you ride a bicycle, you should too!), and I knew he was wrong.

Traffic laws apply to persons riding bicycles.

Every person riding a bicycle upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all of the duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle by this chapter, except as to special regulations in this article and except as to those provisions of this chapter which by their nature can have no application.

(Acts 1980, No. 80-434, p. 604, §12-102.)

Keith Maddox, of Piedmont, Alabama, was arrested by Calhoun County Sheriff’s Deputies for misdemeanor Reckless Endangerment after he posted three self-incriminating videos of himself on FaceBook in which he is shown using his vehicle to jeopardize the life of a bicyclist on a public road. After his arrest, he posted bond, and was released home. Since then, he publicly posted an apology for his behavior on FaceBook.

Note the phrase, “…shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all of the duties…”

In essence, what that means is, that by law, bicycles are to be treated with equal respect as any other motorized vehicle, and are to observe the same laws.

Since the time of that most unfortunate incident several years ago, laws concerning bicycles (at least in Alabama) have not substantially changed, and any addition to the laws have only added requirements for helmets, and other safety measures pertaining to children & youth.

A specific case in point is Keith Maddox, of Peidmont, Alabama, who was arrested by Calhoun County Sheriff’s deputies after he posted three videos of himself on FaceBook in which he is seen jeopardizing the life of a bicyclist. He was charged with Reckless Endangerment, a misdemeanor.

Since his arrest, after posting bond, he has removed the videos, and posted a public apology, which read in part:

“I want to publicly apologize to all people that I have offended over those absolute stupid videos that I posted … anybody who knows me knows that would never ever intentionally hurt anyone. I am truly sorry for anyone I may have offended … and please everyone share the road and be very aware of bicycle riders everywhere.”

Video of the crime is available on YouTube.

Jamie Miernik, of Huntsville, Alabama, is a bicyclist who serves on the Alabama Bicycle Coalition and the Huntsville Bike Advisory & Safety Committee, said the type of aggression seen in Maddox’s videos doesn’t surprise her, adding that, “This happens all the time; I think the frustration this guy has represents the feelings a lot of motorists have at times towards bicycles on the road.”

It’s sad to think that some things haven’t changed… and likely won’t, until someone gets killed, or injured.

To be certain, criticizing the machinations and politics of Alabama is somewhat like criticizing one’s family – only family members can do it with complete immunity. Outsiders stand the risk of getting punched out.

Here’s one well-known complaint: The Legislature.

Sure, even Washington politicians get lambasted, as, I suppose, does every other politician in our union, at every level – federal, state, county, and local.

But here’s the rub: In Alabama, the legislature takes great pride in calling themselves “part-time” legislators, and boast of having full-time jobs “back home” in the community of their residence. Sure, that sounds nice, but what does it really look like?

By law, in Alabama, the Legislature can meet for NO MORE than 30 days (a Legislative Session) in every 105 days.

“Every four years (quadrennium), the members of the House and Senate must reorganize the Legislature, i.e. elect officers, adopt rules of procedure, appoint committees, etc. This reorganization is referred to as an organizational session. The most recent Organizational Session of the Alabama Legislature convened on Tuesday, January 13, 2015 and ended on Wednesday, January 14, 2015. The next organizational session of the Alabama Legislature will convene in 2019.

“The Governor can call a Special Session of the Alabama Legislature at any time. A special session can last no longer than 12 legislative (meeting) days, within a 30-calendar day period.”

Did you catch that?

“During the weeks the Alabama Legislature is convened, legislative days (“in-session”) are usually Tuesdays and Thursdays and committee meetings are typically scheduled for Wednesdays.”

In other words, while in Session, they only meet Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday – 3 days a week.

A ruckus arose over a 2007 legislative “hat trick” in which the Legislature voted themselves a pay raise.

The Goat Hill Gang voted to give themselves an Annual Raise in their monthly expense allowance which would reflect any increase in the Federal Consumer Price Index. And, in 2014, that was 1.5%. And unless they sent letters to their legislative staff declining the raise, they would have received an additional $66 a month starting April 2014.

At that time, according to information from the House of Representatives, an Alabama Legislator’s total compensation was about $56,868 – assuming they took the automatic increases available to them over the years.

According to the Clerk of the House of Representatives, of the state’s 104 Representatives, 66 accepted the raise, while 38 declined it.

And in the Senate, according to figures provided by the Senate, 22 of 35 Senators declined the pay raise, while 13 accepted it.

Yeah – it’s already starting to get deep, and we’ve not even scratched the surface.

“Back in the day,” when many members of the legislature would travel to Montgomery by train, they would get paid a daily wage, plus daily expenses for those days in which they would meet, as well as a monthly travel, and a round-trip expense allowance based upon the distance they would travel to Montgomery from their hometowns.

Presently, Legislators get a $10 daily salary, $50 per diem during session meeting days, a monthly expense allowance and mileage based on railroad miles for one round-trip to Montgomery each session. Never mind that railroads as a means of travel are practically non-existent in Alabama.

In 2007, Legislators voted themselves a 61% pay raise, and established the Annual Legislative Pay Raise System for themselves. Bob Riley, then Governor, vetoed the bill, but the Legislature overrode the veto, and the poor taxpayers of the state got stuck with the bill… at least temporarily.

It must be tough, working 3 days a week, and only 30 days a year making Full-Time Pay. But, that’s exactly what the Alabama State Legislature does.

Voters had the final say in the matter, when in the November 2012 General Election, they overwhelmingly approved the Alabama Legislative Compensation Amendment, Amendment 8 by 68.5% – which added yet another Amendment to the 1901 State Constitution of Alabama (the LONGEST of ANY constitution in the entire world) which would “repeal the existing provisions for legislative compensation and expenses and establish the basic compensation of the Legislature at the median household income in Alabama; to require legislators to submit signed vouchers for reimbursement for expenses; and to prohibit the Legislature from increasing the compensation or expenses payable to its members.”

In Alabama, an anti-competitive law prevents motorists from enjoying low gas prices. This is the price per gallon of a gallon of regular gas purchased at a Kroger Fuel Center in Texas, after using Kroger Fuel Discounts.

In Alabama, a law called the “Motor Fuel Marketing Act” (Code of Alabama §8-22) prevents retailers from selling gasoline (or any other motor fuel, such as diesel) for less than what it costs them to purchase it.

Specifically, the law reads in part, that:

Section 8-22-6

Certain below cost fuel sales prohibited.

It shall be unlawful for any person engaged in commerce in this state to sell or offer to sell motor fuel below cost or to sell or offer to sell it at a price lower than the seller charges other persons…”

In other words, it’s illegal to do that.

The marketing technique of retailing something for less than it costs to purchase it wholesale is called “low-price, or loss leader” and used in the hope that it attracts customers to a store where the retailer hopes the customer will spend more money with them while there.

Here’s an example: A grocer buys a case of toilet paper for $20, and sells it for $10.

The retailer takes a loss on a selected item (in this example, toilet paper), in the hope that the customer will purchase more items while in the store, and thus, increase the retailer’s profit.

But in Alabama, it’s illegal to do that with gasoline, or other motor fuels.

Here’s where it negatively affects families.

Some grocery stores – such as Kroger, for example – have “discount cards” that when swiped at the checkout counter compute a discount on the items purchased. If you don’t have a card, the clerk will often swipe one for you as a courtesy. As well, according to the total you spend, you can accumulate “points” which can translate into a per-gallon discount on gasoline. (Here’s a quick video on how the Kroger Fuel Rewards program works).

“The Kroger fuel program allows you to receive savings of up to $1 off per gallon on fuel purchases at Kroger and 10¢ per gallon at participating Shell Stations. You may redeem 100 fuel points at participating Shell Stations for a 10¢ per gallon savings. And you may redeem up to 1,000 fuel points in a single fill-up at Kroger for up to $1 off per gallon. For each increment of 100 fuel points redeemed at Kroger, 10¢ per gallon will be awarded. Program discount is good for one purchase of fuel, up to 35 gallons. Credit and debit card fraud prevention policies may limit transaction at the dispenser. Offer cannot be combined with any other discounts.”

But, that’s only good in other states, such as Tennessee, Texas, Georgia, Mississippi & Florida, etc. – NOT in Alabama.
To reward a customer by discounting their gasoline purchase would violate the Alabama Motor Fuel Marketing Act.

In their letter of response dated January 29, 2004, which “represents the views of the staff of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition,” they summarized that, “the Act likely harms consumers and restricts competition. Moreover, the Act is unnecessary because the federal antitrust laws already protect against anticompetitive predatory pricing and price discrimination.”

Speaker Newton had drafted a bill which would have repealed the AMFMA, but the bill never got out of committee, and thus, was never voted on by the legislature.

It’s odd that a state which claims it has “family friendly,” and “business friendly” conditions would harm it’s families and businesses by keeping a law that “harms consumers and restricts competition.”

Even more sadly, the Republican-dominated Alabama State Legislature shows no signs of repealing that law.

Sarah Palin Slips into Self-Parody

Her recent performance in Iowa should disqualify her from any role in the GOP going forward.

By Charles C. W. Cooke

In Des Moines this past weekend, Sarah Palin gave a speech, and at long last the vultures began to circle. “A tragedy,” declared Joe Scarborough, on Morning Joe; “bizarro,” ajudged the London Times’ Toby Harnden; “an interminable ramble,” said Iowa professor Sam Clovis. These, alas, were among the kinder adjectives.

In the Washington Examiner, Byron York treated those who missed the address to a brutal dissection. First, he recorded, Palin subjected the crowd to an “extended stream-of-consciousness complaint about media coverage of her decision to run in a half-marathon race in Storm Lake, Iowa.” Next, she offered up some self-righteous “grumbling about coverage of a recent photo of her with a supporter” and a litany of “objections about the social media ruckus over a picture of her six-year-old son Trig.” And, finally, she embarked upon a “free-association ramble on Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, the energy industry, her daughter Bristol, Margaret Thatcher, middle-class economics . . . women in politics, and much more.” All in all, York proposed, this did her no favors at all. Rather, the “long, rambling, and at times barely coherent speech, left some wondering what role she should play in Republican politics as the 2016 race begins.”

This, I think, is a good question, and one to which I have a modest answer: How about . . . none? Instead, Palin should leave the field to those who are in possession of genuine political aspirations, and she should refrain from treating the Republican party as if it were a little more than a convenient vehicle for her private ambition. In the meantime, conservatives who are finally cottoning on to the ruse should recognize that this Iowa sojourn was not an aberration or a blip, but the foreordained culmination of a slow and unseemly descent into farce that began almost immediately after Barack Obama was elected in 2008. So Sarah Palin has become Amy Winehouse? Of course she has. How else exactly was this going to end?

“It would be hard to say,” York observed drily, “that Palin’s 35-minute talk had a theme.” But, one might ask, “Do they ever?” For a long while now, Palin has not so much contributed arguments and ideas as she has thrown together a one-woman variety show for a band of traveling fans. One part free verse, one part Dada-laden ressentiment, and one part primal scream therapy, Palin’s appearances seem to be designed less to advance the ball for the Right and more to ensure that her name remains in the news, that her business opportunities are not entirely foreclosed, and that her hand remains strong enough to justify her role as kingmaker without portfolio. Ultimately, she isn’t really trying to change politics; she’s trying to be politics — the system and its complexities be damned. Want to find a figure to which Palin can be reasonably compared? It’s not Ronald Reagan. It’s Donald Trump.

Some people contain within them a magical quality that leads their fans toward idol worship, and, for whatever reason, Palin appears to have it in spades. But, as she has discovered for herself of late, this can be a decidedly mixed blessing. On the upside, cults provide their beneficiaries with a ready-made army of apologists and sponsors — people, that is, who have primed themselves to push back hard against the most modest of slights and to exact a price from anyone who exhibits the temerity to criticize their focus. On the downside, cults can serve to inoculate their subjects from legitimate judgment and to ease their descent into inadvertent self-parody. Partly because the media has been reflexively unfair to her, and partly because they feel generally put upon by the culture at large, Palin’s fans have of late provided her mostly with the latter service. Last weekend’s speech was the direct result of that tendency.

Consider, if you will, what happens to a person who suggests that Sarah Palin is anything other than saintly. Right off the bat, they are accused of disliking America or Alaska or conservatives or mothers or the working class — or even women in general — and then they are informed that their “hatred” is showing. Next, their motives are questioned and their supposedly secret “agenda” is exposed for the world to see, for no right-thinking person could dislike Palin on the merits, natch. “I hope you enjoy your elite cocktail parties,” the apologists will say, and then they will huffily tell you that they “hope signaling that you are ‘one of them’ was worth it.” And finally — as is the case when one expresses disapproval of other cult figures, such as President Obama, Ron Paul, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and Paul Krugman — it is presumed that all animadversion must be motivated by envy or by snobbery or by secret admiration, and that it can therefore be safely ignored. “What have you done,” they will ask, “that compares to my paragon of virtue?” All told, it’s really quite pathetic.

It is deeply unconservative, too. The Right will likely never agree on how best it should move forward, but we might at least unite against the belief that there exist superheroes who are able to save the country from itself; against the idea that any one person can be the official standard bearer of a whole ideological or demographic group; and against the presumption that conservatism will gain anything much at all from the promotion and advancement of its most erratic champions. Further still, we might refrain from attempting to immunize our friends from the consequences of their actions. Having been mercilessly and unjustly pilloried by the media throughout the 2008 campaign, Sarah Palin had a clear choice in its aftermath: She could sober up and prove the buggers wrong, or she could collapse into ignominious pasquinade. Sadly, she chose the latter. The rest of us should choose to move on.

It’s fairly explanatory. American corporations are making profits hand over fist. They’re making more profit now, than before the “Great Recession.” In fact, they’re making more than DOUBLE from their lowest during that time.

Corporate Profits After Tax

Picture #2:

Again, this one’s self-explanatory. The average household has lost income since the late 1990’s. In fact, they’ve lost nearly $5000 since then. The levels being earned now are are the same as they were 20 years ago.

Real Median Household Income in the United States

Picture #3:

Again, fairly self-explanatory. Employees are being paid less than they were in 1970, when it reached an all-time high. Comparatively speaking, they’re being paid at rates they were earning around 1945.

Shares of Gross Domestic Income: Compensation of Employees, Paid

Picture #4:

Same thing here. Employees are earning less. And, the rate has fallen continuously since 1970.

Things AREN’T getting any cheaper. Seriously. For all the hype about “making things cheaper” and all the specious claims made about lower prices from increased production… it’s a load-full of hooey.

Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: All Items

Picture #6:

You’re paying more Income Taxes than Corporations. A HELL of a lot more. Almost THREE times as much. Some folks call that “Corporate Welfare,” because taxes have been cut & slashed on Multi-National Corporations and their über wealthy owners & masters. In other words, you’re being triple overburdened, and Corporations are getting off scot-free. How does that make you feel?

It was perhaps his 1978 album “Living Room Suite” which I had seen her playing, but it was his second album “Sniper and Other Love Songs,” released in October 1972, which I subsequently purchased, which so powerfully affected me.

Chapin died tragically in July 1981, aged 38, and though the exact cause of his death was undetermined, he was thought to have suffered cardiac arrest while driving, which was explained as the likely cause of his wreck. The truck driver into whose path he swerved, along with the assistance of a passer-by, rescued him from his burning 1975-model Volkswagen Rabbit, and he was subsequently flown to a nearby hospital where a team of perhaps 10 or more worked fruitlessly for nearly a half-hour to save his life.

Chapin’s artistic creative style might be considered similar, somewhat, to that of a troubadour or wandering minstrel, because each and every song on that album – and indeed, every song of his – was a well-crafted, and expertly told story. The stories weren’t from a fantastic, idealistic fantasy life, but were from everyone’s work-a-day life. The struggles, trials, tribulations, joys, victories and crushing blows of unjust defeats in life were all subjects in his songs. From “W – O – L – D,” to one of his best-known “Cat’s In The Cradle,” Chapin’s gift of lyric and music made each song a veritable raconteur’s masterpiece.

As many older older teens are, at that time in my life, there were many impressions being made upon my mind and heart. My story was only beginning to be written in earnest. It was as if each day of my life was a veritable book of new and fresh beginnings, upon which it’s empty pages life was being written.

But it was one song in particular of all Chapin’s songs from that album which became indelibly etched into my memory.

“Woman Child” tells the story of a young girl who, as every young boy and girl does, seeks the intimately affectionate touch of another.

Chapin tells the story of a young girl’s unplanned pregnancy in artfully poignant terms. The questioning, the shame, fear, the doubt, the denial, including… “the sweet salvation that a little old knife can bring.”

In 1972, the year “Sniper and Other Love Songs” was released, the United States’ laws concerning abortion were in their infancy. Roe v. Wade was initially argued December 1971, re-argued October 1972, with a decision rendered January 1973. And female birth control pills weren’t available in all 50 states until after March 1972, following the Eisenstadt v. Baird decision which was also rendered by the Supreme Court of the United States. And it was only 6 years earlier, in June 1965, that Griswold v. Connecticut was decided, which found a “right to privacy” existed under the United States Constitution.

It was in this sociological caldron that Chapin conceived and birthed “Woman Child,” a sweet-yet-sadly dark song with semi-spooky overtones, which directly avoids making judgements, saving it’s lyric story for descriptive observations such as “I turned you on to my solid body my electric Gibson guitar,” “mama’s little angel’s been defiled,” and “what will you tell your teddy bear?” But perhaps the most grotesquely macabre and stinging, telling twist of a phrase is “the sweet salvation that little old knife can bring.”

As an expert raconteur, Chapin expertly weaves the story’s elements, first from the perspective of the young girl in the second person, then her lover, and finally, the abortionist. And in this work, as with his others, he casts neither moralizing judgment, indictment, nor praise. He simply tells the story from the perspective of the involved parties. And, it is that style for which some castigate him. Yet it remains the genius for which he may best be remembered.

Woman Child
by Harry Chapin

Dripping streetlights, and darkened buildings wandering head hung down low. Where will she go?

As she’s walkingShe can’t help wondering,Does her mama know?Where will she go?

Every quadrennium, January 19 commemorates a special event in Alabama. It is Inauguration Day, when a new Governor takes the Oath of Office, and a new administration of state government begins. Second, this year, January 19, 2015 is unique because it marks the simultaneous and concurrent celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Ironically, Alabama commemorates the birthday of Robert E. Lee, General of the Confederacy, in conjunction with MLK Day.

So, today marked a triple peculiarity; 1.) a re-elected governor sworn in on; 2.) the day the state and nation celebrate the life and Civil Rights accomplishments of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and; 3.) the state celebrates the birthday of the General of the Confederate Army, Robert E. Lee.

There could hardly be any greater irony.

Freedom and equal rights under Constitutional law is simultaneously celebrated with the memory of a rebellious, oppressive regime which had a vested interest in indentured servitude… more often known as “slavery.” Patterson Hood, founder of the alt-rock Southern Rock group Drive-By Truckers, has described it as “the duality of the Southern thing.”

It reminds me of a hit song in the late 1970’s by a Christian Rock duet named DeGarmo & Key entitled “God Good, Devil Bad” which partial lyrics were:“I met a man in the Nassau hotel, “A stranger to my eyes. “He had a tattoo on his arm of Jesus “And the Devil side by side. “I found the nerve so I said “Hey buddy! “Just whats the matter with you? “Don’t you know that you can’t serve two masters “A real man’s gotta choose!”

“I said… “Who do you love? “Who do you serve? “Who do you love? (Are you stupid?) “There’s four simple words “You better learn - “‘God Good – Devil Bad’ “It’s an elementary truth, “its the law of the land “‘God Good – Devil Bad.’ “Every child on earth got to understand - “God Good.”

Today, in his re-Inaugural Address, Alabama Governor Bentley said in part that, “I am the governor of all of Alabama — Democrat, Republican and independent, young and old, black and white, rich and poor. My job is to make all of our lives better together. I am particularly honored to be inaugurated on a day celebrating the life of one of our country’s most influential leaders. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached about facing challenge and adversity not far from where we stand today.

“Dr. King once said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

“I believe these words continue to ring true. I know these are challenging times for many of our citizens. I’ve looked into the eyes of those who’ve lost jobs and can’t feed their families. I’ve talked to people who have lost their homes. What I am trying to say is that I know times are tough. I’ve seen the challenges.

“But as I’ve traveled all across Alabama, I’ve also been reminded of the strength and determination of our resilient people.

“I want to take a moment to encourage you to do what I’ve done. Travel this state — take time to enjoy the beauty of Alabama. Visit the mountains of north Alabama, enjoy our clear lakes and streams, stroll the main streets of our small towns in rural Alabama, and spend some good, quality time on the beautiful, clean beaches of Gulf Shores.

“I believe, if you do this, you will learn what many of us have known all our lives: We are fortunate to live in a remarkable state.

“They’re tired of partisan politics and the federal government. They want action, not arguments. Americans are looking to their own state governments to provide leadership. And we’re going to do that in Alabama.

“We live in a great country, and we will work with the federal government when we can, but they will not dictate our every move.

“As elected representatives, we answer to you, the people of Alabama, not to politicians in Washington.”

Alabama Governor Robert J. Bentley, MD (retired), a Republican, seen on RIGHT, is sworn in for a second and by law, final gubernatorial term Monday, January 19, 2015 in front of the State Capitol Building in Montgomery by Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore (R) on LEFT, as Bentley’s wife Diana holds the Bible.The Governor has said the state faces tough fiscal times, though he steadfastly refuses to raise taxes, most notably property taxes on Multi-National timber interests which own vast swathes of land, and pay a fractional pittance of the value in Property Taxes upon their holdings. Also under fire is the state’s well-known, and highly publicized regressive Personal Income Taxin which the impoverished pay amuch higher percentage rate than do the wealthy.The governor’s speech may be read here. Photo by Julie Bennett/ jbennett@al.com

It was a throwback to the “Bad Old Days” when segregation was the law of the land, and enshrined in Alabama Politics.

It should be remembered, that in his re-Inaugural Address, Alabama Governor, Dr. Robert Bentley, MD (retired) said in part, that, “I know these are challenging times for many of our citizens. I’ve looked into the eyes of those who’ve lost jobs and can’t feed their families. I’ve talked to people who have lost their homes. What I am trying to say is… I know times are tough. I’ve seen the challenges.”

The disturbing part of his remedy was to “…do what I’ve done. Travel this state — take time to enjoy the beauty of Alabama. Visit the mountains of north Alabama, enjoy the clear lakes and streams, stroll the main streets of our small towns in rural Alabama, and spend some good, quality time down on the beautiful, clean beaches at Gulf Shores. I believe, if you do this, you will learn what many of us already know in our lives, that we are fortunate to live in a remarkable state.”

Just to make certain I understand this… you’re out of a job, homeless, no food for your, or your families’ bellies, no healthcare, and the governor wants you to go on a vacation?

Could there be any more out-of-touch-with reality tomfoolery?

Such is a hallmark characteristic of Dissociative Disorder, a mental health illness in which there exists “a dissociation from or interruption of a person’s fundamental aspects of waking consciousness (such as one’s personal identity, one’s personal history, etc.),” and is exhibited as “the person with a dissociative disorder experiences a disconnection and lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, surroundings, actions and identity.” The malady is frequently associated with trauma, and “thought to be a coping mechanism.”

If you were a fan of the made-for-television drama “Breaking Bad,” you may recall an episode in which the central character & protagonist Walter White, the High School Chemistry Teacher-turned Meth Lord, pretended to exhibit a dissociative fugue in order to masquerade one his more nefarious escapades and escape from death at the hands of a local cartel competitor in the desert Southwest.

Governor Bentley further remarked that, “…it is time that we — the men and women elected by you — remember this: We all work for the citizens of this state. We have 4.5 million bosses.”

Among other inane things Governor Bentley mentioned in a rambling and poorly delivered 16 minute speech, he spent an inordinate amount of time fawning over his immediate political predecessor, Bob Riley, whom he mentioned at least three times.

Mention of Riley is peculiar on at least two counts: 1.) The re-elected Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard faces 23 counts of felony indictments of “the new ethics laws proposed and signed by Gov. Riley,” and; 2.) the reference to a “smooth transition between the end of his administration and the beginning of ours,” because it was four years ago.

Filed under: - Did they REALLY say that?, - My Hometown is the sweetest place I know, - Politics... that "dirty" little "game" that first begins in the home. Tagged: AL, Alabama, ALpolitics, DBT, Drive-by Truckers, GOP, governor, Governor Bentley, Inauguration, indictment, Jefferson Davis, MLK, news, Republican, Robert Bentley, speech]]>https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/19/alpolitics-inauguration-day-2015-meet-the-new-boss-same-as-the-old-boss/feed/0Warm Southern BreezeCommemorative marker, Jefferson Davis Confederate Presidency Oath, Alabama State Capitol Buiding, MontgomeryAlabama Governor Robert J. Bentley, MD (retired), a Republican, seen on RIGHT, is sworn in for a second and by law, final gubernatorial term by Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, as Bentley's wife Diana holds the Bible. The Governor has said the state faces tough fiscal times, though he steadfastly refuses to raise taxes, most notably property taxes on Multi-National timber interests which own vast swathes of land, and pay a fractional pittance of the value in Property Taxes upon their holdings. Also under fire is the state's well-known, and highly publicized regressive Personal Income Tax in which the impoverished pay a much higher percentage rate than do the wealthy. The governor's speech may be read here.Best & Worst States to Practice Nursing in 2014https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/17/best-worst-states-to-practice-nursing-in-2014/
https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/17/best-worst-states-to-practice-nursing-in-2014/#commentsSat, 17 Jan 2015 14:00:22 +0000http://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/?p=16632]]>To be certain, there’s plenty of misunderstanding about what exactly Nurses do, and who exactly Nurses are.

So, to clear the air, let’s set the record straight, and get a quick backgrounder before diving into the deep end.

In whatever state they choose to practice, all 50 states requires all Nurses to be licensed before they begin practice. Licensed Vocational Nurses (LNVs) are considered technicians, while Registered Nurses (RNs) are professionals.

The LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse), which in some states is called LVN (Licensed Vocational Nurse), most often has earned a certificate in less than a year, and has a significantly different educational track than a Registered Nurse (RN), even when the RN has an ADN (Associate Degree Nursing). The RN utilizes critical thinking skills, and the responsibilities the RN has are more complex, and therefore always supervisory in nature over the LVN/LPN. Because of the complexities and advances in healthcare, and patient care, LVNs are NOT permitted by license to do the same things as a RN. Pay, of course, comes along for the ride, and RNs are paid more.

Registered Nurses may begin practice by earning an Associate’s Degree Nursing (a two-year degree) typically at a Junior or Community College, or by earning a Bachelor of Science Nursing (BSN), a four-year degree most often earned from a University. Both the ADN & BSN must pass the NCLEX – the National Council Licensure Examination – before they can practice Registered Nursing.

Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) are BSN-prepared RNs whom have obtained additional education and training, typically a Master of Science Nursing (MSN) in a specialty area of Nursing practice such as Gerontology (specialized care for the elderly), Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACNP), Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP), Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), etc. Frequently, following earning their MSNs, APNs have also obtained National Certification in their area of specialty, and many have prescriptive authority, depending upon the laws of the state in which they practice. Because they have more education, more experience, and more responsibility, they are also paid more. APNs may also continue education and training to the doctoral and post-doctoral levels.

There’s an entirely different can of worms when comparing the practice of APNs and physicians. One of the ways they differ, are that States regulate Nursing practice, while physicians’ professional organizations set guidelines for physician practice, not the States. Of course, an ophthalmologist (eye surgeon) couldn’t go to a hospital and perform back surgery, because it wouldn’t be included in the type of procedures the ophthalmologist is permitted to perform at the hospital where the physician had privileges. Further, insurance companies would not reimburse an ophthalmologist for spinal surgery, and malpractice insurance companies would not cover an ophthalmologist to perform spinal surgery. But the point is, that no State law would prohibit an ophthalmologist from performing spinal surgery.

In stark contrast to the physician model wherein state government does not regulate physician practice, the AACN notes that the Nurse Practitioner’s (sometimes also referred to as APN, or Advanced Practice Nurse) “educational time is 100% concentrated on the clinical area where the NP clinician will actually be practicing.” Interestingly, the Institute of Medicine and National Council of State Boards of Nursing both recommend to “remove scope-of-practice barriers” and adopt the Full Independent Practice model.

Now, having mentioned the foregoing, it should be also understood that Nurses (RNs) practice in a variety of settings, some in traditional clinical settings (hospitals & surgery centers), while others may deliver healthcare in community based settings, such as schools. Some may work in Health Insurance, or perform Research, while others may work independently in Consultancy & Advisory capacities and draft policy for governments and agencies domestically, or internationally.

With respect for all the above, the following report is directed at the Nurse in clinical-based practice, again, which is most often the RN.

Best and Worst States for Nurses 2014

Which States Provide the Best, and Worst, Environments for Nurses to Practice?

Andrea Santiago is a freelance writer, and graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education, cum laude.

Photo by Thomas Barwick/Stone/Getty Images

An annual report from WalletHub analyzed the best and worst states for nurses. The company compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia using 15 key metrics, including current and future (projected) average nurse salaries in those states.

Other factors that impacted each state’s ranking regarding nurse employment include the number of health care facilities per capita, competition for nursing jobs (based on the volume of nurses per capita, and the amount of job openings for nurses in each state), age of the population, and unemployment rate.

Based on the metrics, the top ten best states for nurses to practice as of 2014 are:

Oregon

Washington

South Dakota

Arizona

New Mexico

Alaska

Wyoming

Minnesota

Texas

Maryland

According to the same metrics, the following ten states are the worst states for nurses to practice as of 2014:

42. District of Columbia

43. Delaware

44. Arkansas

45. Georgia

46. Kentucky

47. West Virginia

48. Tennessee

49. Alabama

50. Louisiana

51. Mississippi

What the State Rankings Mean for Nurses:

How should nurses use these rankings when making their career decisions, if at all? Odysseas Papadimitriou, CEO of WalletHub, says this about the state rankings for nursing careers:

“First and foremost, our rankings are designed to promote awareness among new entrants into the nursing profession about the most pressing issues facing the field and how the policies used in different states and by different employers can affect the tenor of their day to day activities. This may lead both recent graduates and currently employed nurses in low ranking states to look across borders for their next job, or it may force them to be more discerning about which hospital or health care facility they sign with locally. Either way, they’ll know a bit more about what they’re getting into.”

According to the executives at WalletHub, the following nursing credentials were included in their analysis:

WalletHub execs say that the results of this report revealed a few surprising facts. For example, the entire southeast region of the United States ranked very poorly. The southeastern region appears, as a whole, to be a relatively unfriendly environment for nurses, unfortunately for nursing professionals in those states.

There were also some interesting extremes revealed in the report, between high- and low-ranking states. Based on the sub-metrics, the following gaps became apparent:

Washington DC (#42 on the list) has 16 times more nursing job openings per capita than Alabama (#49).

Washington DC has almost triple the amount of nurses per capita than Nevada (#34).

Oregon (#1) has almost five times more health care facilities per capita than Delaware (#43).

The top three states based solely on nursing salaries were Texas, Nevada, and Arizona. Nurses in Washington DC and Hawaii are paid the least, on average.

States with the oldest population (percentage over age 65) projected by 2030 were Florida, Maine, and Wyoming. The states with the lowest concentration of residents over 65 in projected for 2030 are Alaska, Washington DC, and Utah.

More About the Report:

In addition to the aforementioned metrics, WalletHub also took into account the rankings of local nursing schools in each state, the number of medically underserved areas in each state, mandatory overtime restrictions, quality of nursing homes in the state, average commute times, average work hours, and how the state ranked in the “Best States for Working Moms” list.

The writers of the report used data from the census bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Indeed.com, American Nurses Association, among others.

To view the full report with graphs, and methodology, view it on WalletHub.com.

2014′s Best & Worst States for Nurses

The nursing industry – like most segments of the economy – is in a state of significant transition under the weight of major overarching socioeconomic dynamics, from the aging U.S. population and the Affordable Care Act to the student loan crisis and concerns about the future of key entitlement programs. It’s therefore understandable if recent nursing school grads aren’t sure where to turn once they receive their diploma.

That concern is not unique among recent graduates, regardless of industry, but both the magnitude of the issue – the nursing industry is expected to grow far faster than the average occupation through 2022 – and the various day-to-day demands placed on nursing professionals – from overstaffing and mandatory overtime to unionization and allegations of systematic disrespect – are indeed profession-specific. With that in mind, WalletHub decided to take stock of the nursing industry in order to help nurses, particularly the newly minted of the bunch, lay down roots in areas that are conducive to both personal and professional success.

We compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of 15 key metrics that collectively speak to the job opportunities that exist for nurses in each market, how much competition there is for each position, differences in the workplace environment, and projections for the future. You can check out our findings as well as the methodology we used to conduct this report and expert commentary on the state of the nursing industry below.

15 Measurements (as described below under Methodology) were factored to rank the 50 states for Opportunity, Competition, and Work Environment for Nurses

Methodology

WalletHub took 15 key metrics into account in assessing the relative activeness of the 50 states and the District of Columbia to nurses. In doing so, we considered trends both short- and long-term related to the employment opportunities that exist in each state, the quality of the jobs that are available, the amount of competition that does and will exist in the local job market, and the nature of the workplace environment in which nurses operate.

You can check out the metrics as well as the corresponding weights we used to construct our overall rankings below. The three categories under which the metrics are listed were used for organizational purposes only and did not factor in to our overall rankings.

Competition

Work Environment

Mandatory Overtime Restrictions: 1

States with the Largest Share of the Best Nursing Homes: 0.5

Best States for Working Moms Rank: 0.5

Average Number of Hours Worked: 0.5

Average Commute Time: 0.5

Source: Data used to create these rankings is courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Missouri Economic Research & Information Center, Indeed.com, the US Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. News & World Report, the American Nurses Association and WalletHub research.

About the Author:John Kiernan is Senior Writer & Editor at Evolution Finance. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a BA in Journalism, a minor in Sport Commerce & Culture, and the University Honors Citation. His previous work experience includes USA TODAY and The Washington Post. Mr. Kiernan is a Washington, D.C. native and an avid fan of the Nats, Skins, Caps and Wizards. His favorite activities are golf and surfing.

TRANSLATION:

My owner was TOO STUPID to take the keys, lower the windows sufficiently to allow proper ventilation, or stash the groceries in the trunk… and then, made this idiotic picture in an attempt to divert responsibility and place the blame upon me.

Stupid Dog Owner Made Sign Blaming Dog For Her Mistakes

Kinda’ makes you wonder which one is really the stupid bitch… doesn’t it?

Jennifer Collins McNeill was a married 39 year old 6th Grade Teacher at Thorsby K-12 School, in Chilton County, Alabama who went after her son’s friend who was 14 years old, and whom she had met at church.

Warrants filed in Chilton County Circuit Court show that Mrs. McNeill was charged with six counts of second degree rape and two counts of second degree sodomy with a juvenile male under 16 years of age, but older than 12, between April 10, 2012 and June 28 of 2013. Court records indicate she was released from the Chilton County Jail Saturday, August 17, 2013 after posting $160,000 bond. She is due for arraignment March 10, 2015.

Jennifer Collins McNeill, 39, was a 6th-Grade teacher and cheerleader team sponsor in Thorsby, AL when she sexually abused a student at the school where she worked. The Chilton County District Attorney has charged her with with six counts of second degree rape and two counts of second degree sodomy for different incidents with the same victim, who was aged 14 at the time.

Terry Abbott, who owns Drive West Communications, a Houston, Texas-based Public Relations firm, counted a total of 781 sexual abuse cases in schools throughout the United States in 2014. Although only 25 occurred in Alabama, when compared to the population, the number of cases ranks the state #1 in the United States for Predatory Sexual Misconduct by Teachers & School System Employees.

Mr. Abbot was Chief of Staff to Secretary of Education Rod Paige in 2001 during George W. Bush’s first term as president.

In 2014, he and his team tracked every available news report of teacher-student sex in the United States, every day. He admitted that his methodology was imperfect, but also acknowledged that there is no federal database to collect information, and no uniform federal law prohibiting such behavior. For example, it’s illegal in Alabama for any school employee to have a sexual relationship with a student younger than age 19. But in Wyoming, as long as the student is 16 or older and consents to the relationship, it’s not a crime. And in Michigan, all such relationships are illegal, regardless of the student’s age.

“In some cases, educators are committing heinous crimes involving children throughout the country and getting very little, if any, real punishment for it. You turn around and find a similar case in another state and find the judicial system has thrown the book at the educator. In a state where it’s not against the law for a teacher to have a relationship with a student of a certain age, obviously you wouldn’t have as many of those cases reported because it’s not a crime.”

Extrapolating the data, he found that, based upon the United States Census Bureau estimated population for 2014 (4.85 Million), the rate of such crimes was one for every 193,975 Alabama residents.

For Cases Per Capita, he found that Kentucky, Louisiana, Vermont and Mississippi were the rest of the nation’s top five worst offending states for Teacher-on-Student sex.

For sheer numbers, Texas had the highest rate, with 116 of 781 accusations and convictions. “Alabama is the 23rd most populous state in the country, but was 9th in the most of these cases in 2014,” he said.

Mr. Abbot has strong ties to Alabama, having been born and worked as a Reporter there, and later served as Press Secretary to Guy Hunt, the state’s first Republican Governor since Reconstruction after the Civil War. He was also Campaign Manager for U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions’ first campaign, and several other politicians.

Acknowledging that some adopt a Libertarian notion that the age of consent is a factor in Teacher-Student sexual relationships, and ought to be allowed, he noted that is actually a violation of a sacred relationship.

“Teachers have authority over children every day, so it’s very important to protect that relationship, and any teacher who abuses that authority and takes advantage of a child in the classroom, that should be considered a serious crime. I’m a parent, and we send our children to school every day to be educated. We don’t send them there to be sexually assaulted. An educator’s first and most important priority ought to be the safety of every child in that building.”

Filed under: - Faith, Religion, Goodness - What is the Soul of a man?, - Lost In Space: TOTALLY Discombobulated, - My Hometown is the sweetest place I know, - Read 'em and weep: The Daily News Tagged: abuse, AL, Alabama, boys, children, crime, female, Oral sex, rape, school, sex, sodomy, teacher, teachers, women]]>https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/best-place-to-meet-boys/feed/0Warm Southern BreezeJennifer Colling McNeill, was a teacher in the Jefferson County School system when she sexually abused a student at the school where she worked.History Looks Forward: SCOTUS Chief Justice John G. Roberts Appointment No Accidenthttps://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/history-looks-forward-scotus-chief-justice-john-g-roberts-appointment-no-accident/
https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/history-looks-forward-scotus-chief-justice-john-g-roberts-appointment-no-accident/#commentsThu, 15 Jan 2015 20:33:59 +0000http://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/?p=16598]]>It wasn’t by accident that George W. Bush nominated John Roberts as SCOTUS Chief Justice, because he’s the SECOND YOUNGEST of ALL the Justices (Elena Kagan b.4/28/1960 is younger than John Roberts b.1/27/1955 by 5 years, 3 months, 3 days), and his influence could be felt for perhaps 40+ years. At his appointment, John G. Roberts was aged 48 years, only 4 years older than the First Chief Justice, John Jay (served 1789-1795), who was aged 44 years when he took the oath of office.

FYI, the youngest Associate Justice was Joseph Story (served 1811-1845), who was aged 32 years when he took the oath of office.

The longest serving Associate Justice was William O. Douglas who served 36 years, 7 months, and 8 days from 1939 to 1975.

The longest serving Chief Justice was Chief Justice John Marshall who served 34 years, 5 months and 11 days from 1801 to 1835.

The average number of years that Justices have served is 16.

However… the average tenure of a Supreme Court Justice from 1789 through 1970 was 14.9 years.

For those Justices who have retired since 1970, the average tenure jumped to 26.1 years.

Of the Justices now serving, Antonin Scalia has been serving the longest, having been sworn in September 26, 1986.

Because of the long tenure of recent members of the Court, there were no vacancies on the Supreme Court from 1994 to the middle of 2005.

The trend toward longer service has “led to significantly less frequent vacancies on the Court, which reduces the efficacy of the democratic check that the appointment process provides on the Court’s membership. The increase in the longevity of Justices’ tenure means that life tenure now guarantees a much longer tenure on the Court than was the case in 1789 or over most of our constitutional history.”

Filed under: - Politics... that "dirty" little "game" that first begins in the home. Tagged: Chief Justice, court, Elena Kagan, federal, John G. Roberts, John Roberts, law, Roberts, Scalia, SCOTUS, Supreme Court]]>https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/history-looks-forward-scotus-chief-justice-john-g-roberts-appointment-no-accident/feed/0Warm Southern BreezeYour Marriage Is Broken. What Next?https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/your-marriage-is-broken-what-next/
https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/your-marriage-is-broken-what-next/#commentsWed, 24 Dec 2014 20:19:05 +0000http://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/your-marriage-is-broken-what-next/]]>Regular readers will know that this blog doesn’t focus on just one thing. It covers a wide variety of topics, because we human beings have an equally wide variety of interests.

In light of that fact, I share the following.

The 7 Secrets of Fixing Your Marriage

By Mort Fertel
Author & Founder of “The Marriage Fitness Program”

SECRET 1: PUT YOUR PROBLEMS ASIDE

My wife and I started out deeply in love. I remember staying up all night talking, surprising each other with thoughtful gifts, and speaking to each other in code words. You know the feeling of really being connected? That was us.

But then something happened that destroys most marriages. We had a son who died when he was just one week old. And then we had twin daughters, who also died as newborns.

Understandably, my wife became depressed. I coped by immersing myself in work. We ran from each other emotionally.

Your situation probably was not so tragic, but something happened. What was it? How did you lose each other? Or maybe you can’t put your finger on why things aren’t the same anymore. That’s common too.

For us, after losing 3 children, everything felt different. Instead of talking all night, it was a chore to talk for a few minutes. Instead of using our code words, we used curse words. Our relationship consisted of screaming matches and silent treatments.

Somewhere deep in our heart though, like you, we knew we didn’t want to lose each other. So we made a commitment to work on our marriage. Sometimes I tried and my wife didn’t. Sometimes my wife tried and I didn’t. Sometimes we tried together. We went through different stages of “trying.”

What did we try?

We tried the obligatory, “Honey, let me repeat what you said to make sure I understood you correctly.” We applied conflict resolution strategies. My wife learned about Mars and I learned about Venus. We even went to counseling to wrestle with our problems. But guess what. Nothing changed. Nothing worked.

Because all the advice we got (books, counselors…whatever) asked us to confront our problems. But that just made us feel worse. And fight more.

As long as the “right” way wasn’t working, why not be dysfunctional? So we tried to convince each other of our way. You tried that too, right? Obviously, that doesn’t work.

Finally, we had a breakthrough.

We decided to SET ASIDE OUR PROBLEMS. We didn’t talk about them at all. We didn’t bring them up even once. Instead, we put our energy into trying to connect. We used certain relationship techniques that transformed our marriage. Not only did we resolve our differences; we fell in love again! And we did it not by dealing with our problems (as serious as they were), but by establishing new relationship habits that brought positive energy to our marriage

This is the solution to most marital situations – to STEP AWAY from your problems and spend your time and energy building your relationship through positive actions.

It’s counter-intuitive, but if you do this RIGHT, your problems will dissipate, the threat of divorce will go away, and the other people invading your marriage will become irrelevant. Slowly but surely you will come closer together again.

Before you deal with your problems, you first have to build good will with your spouse. And this is doable even in the most difficult marital situations. If your marriage is stressed, do NOT tackle your problems. Stop talking about the affair, the attention you’re not getting, or whatever. If your timing is off, trying to solve your problems will damage your marriage and make it LESS LIKELY that you’ll ever find resolution. The key is NOT to fix what’s wrong. The key is to make new things right.

From The Marriage Fitness Program

NEXT WEEK: SECRET #2

Filed under: - Uncategorized]]>https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/24/your-marriage-is-broken-what-next/feed/0Warm Southern BreezeMcFat Like Me: Wanna’ Soup Or Size That?https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/mcfat-like-me-wanna-soup-or-size-that/
https://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/mcfat-like-me-wanna-soup-or-size-that/#commentsSat, 20 Dec 2014 04:14:57 +0000http://warmsouthernbreeze.wordpress.com/2014/12/19/mcfat-like-me-wanna-soup-or-size-that/]]>McD’s began rationing French Fries Wednesday morning, December 17, at it’s 3100 Japanese locations as an emergency airlift of 1,000 tons of spuds and an extra shipment by sea from the U.S. East Coast set sail.

The highly processed frozen spuds are deep-fryer ready, and a leading U.S. export. Folks in the Land of The Rising Sun love their French Fried spuds, and eat more than 300k tons of the imported American tuber annually, according to USDA figures. Of particular note, most of Japan’s locally grown potatoes are eaten fresh.

McD’s continually denies any responsibility, role or contribution to increased obesity, either in America, or abroad where they conduct business. But increased rates of Japanese obesity, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome, suggest not conspiracy, but wanton disregard for, if not flagrant violation of, Japan’s Ministry of Health 2008 ‘Metabo Law’ that requires men to maintain a waist line less than 33.5 inches and women less than 35.4 inches.

A McDonald’s in Japan

The American Fast Food Industry was introduced to Japan in the 1970’s, and since then, consumption of rice in the daily Japanese diet has decreased and been replaced by bread, meat, dairy products, hamburgers, French fries, milkshakes and doughnuts.

Similarly to America, one of the time-honored Family Values of enjoying freshly prepared food at home has declined, and consumption of Industrially Prepared Food, and use of video games has risen.

Even though the Japanese diet still includes much more fish having omega-3 fatty acids, the adoption of a more ‘Western Diet’ is causing health problems. O3FAs are thought to protect against heart disease, and on average, the Japanese eat much less food high in saturated fat than Americans.

The Japanese government has quickly acknowledged the damaging health effects of Industrialized Food Production, which is known as the Standard American Diet, and has moved to disincentivize their citizens from becoming obese like Americans.

Japanese people have historically enjoyed a high life expectancy, very nearly 80 years, although in recent years, their increase in longevity has slowed to 1.2%. The Japanese health care system provides Universal Coverage primarily through local government or employer insurance, and the system is foreseeing dire financial trouble because chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, high blood pressure, high glucose levels and cholesterol will significantly burden the system.

As the Japanese population ages and their health begins to deteriorate, the workforce will not be large enough to cover those health costs. The government sees an opportunity to cut costs by lowering rising obesity.

The thought of others seeing me so heartbroken was unconscionable, one which I simply could not bear.

Why?

A nubile young woman had come into our service for a pre-surgical colonoscopy. She was unmarried, and nulliparous – had never borne children.

When one has a colonoscopy, the hospital gown is standard attire. Understandably, no undergarments are worn. Cardiac monitor leads are attached to the chest, and access to the colon is obtained via the anus. The patient is positioned on their left side, with legs slightly toward the chest, and knees flexed – as if you might sleep on your side. Typically, sedative-hynotic medications are employed to relax the patient, and induction into sleep is fairly rapid. Propofol is often used, though other combinations may be used, depending upon patient need, insurance payment requirements & physician choice.

The room is darkened to allow the video monitor screens to be more readily seen. That’s because the entire journey, from start to finish, is viewed upon a video monitor. Endoscopes are marvelous pieces of medical equipment. They are threaded into our bodies, around corners, over valleys, and through crevices. Imagine threading a garden hose from your front yard into your backyard garden from inside your living room. Now you have an idea of what’s going on. On the tip of the scope is a very bright LED light and camera lens to visualize the colon wall, and anatomical markers along the path to the cecum – where the small intestine empties into the colon (large intestine).

Naturally, examination of the patient’s body is important, and may reveal other associated, or underlying problems, and is an integral part of the procedure. Such examination may reveal external hemorrhoids, warts, other features or markers, or ancillary sociological and health-related clues… including signs of sexual abuse/trauma.

My presence had been requested if assistance was needed, so I was actively observing.

Appearing between her legs, around her genitalia was a rather large, protruding condyloma. It was quite visible because of it’s size – approximating that of a large cantaloupe.

The procedure was uneventful, and shortly afterward, I conferred with a colleague about details on the case.

The patient was scheduled to have a TPE – Total Pelvic Exenteration – the next day. TPE is not just major surgery – it is radical. Any time the bladder, complete reproductive system – uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes, vagina – and portions of the colon are removed in one fell swoop, it’s radical.

She had advanced cervical cancer from HPV – Human Papilloma Virus – and every effort to save her life was going to be made. Tragedies like hers are preventable, and they’re complicated by the demons of low education, and poverty. But worse, they’re exacerbated by governors in states that refuse to Expand Medicaid. Often, one simply does not “go to the doctor” unless it’s already too late. By then, cases are where little can be done, except to “mop up.” Those whom claim to be physicians and governors who do not provide care only frustrate public health, but contribute to the demise of the people. There is reserved a special place in Hell for them, and others who do not care “for the least of these, My brethren.”

For her, TPE meant no possibility of sexual activity… ever.

For her, TPE meant pooping into a bag from a hole in her abdomen… for the rest of her life.

For her, TPE meant peeing into a bag from a hole in her abdomen… for the rest of her life.

For her, TPE meant continually purchasing gizmos and gadgets to care for the ostomies… for the rest of her life.

For her, TPE meant emotional upheaval.

For her, TPE meant social alienation and isolation.

For her, TPE meant the real possibility that she would forever remain unmarried.

For her, TPE meant her life – however brief it may be – was forever scarred by a failure of public health.

During an interview with Christian sex therapists Clifford and Joyce Penner, e-Harmony founder Neil Clark Warren asked, “What percentage of couples can attain a mutually satisfying sexual relationship?” The Penners responded, “100 percent of them. We’ve never worked with a single married couple whom we felt were incapable of attaining a high level of sexual satisfaction with each other.”

Couples often ask us how to keep the excitement in sex. Our answer: Stay connected. Being connected body to body and heart to heart is what makes sex fulfilling and fun. Here are 13 ways you and your spouse can have more passion.

1. Kiss deeply.
Do you remember the kind of kissing you did when you first fell in love? Do you still kiss that deeply and passionately? Rediscover passionate kissing. Take your time. Enjoy the touch and taste of each other’s lips.

2. Bask in the afterglow.
Savor the closeness you feel after having sex. Stay in each other’s arms. Tell your spouse how good it felt and how much you love him or her. This is one of the most intimate times as a couple.

3. Become a student of your spouse’s sexual zones.
One episode of the sitcom Friends dealt with the different erogenous zones. The characters were discussing sex outside the context of marriage, which, of course, we don’t condone. However, the scriptwriters made an interesting point about males and females. Monica and Rachel identified seven erogenous zones. Chandler said, “You’re kidding. I thought there were four.” One of the women replied, “See, that’s your problem. You go one, two, four. You’re missing three, five, six. Oh! And toes! Seven.”

A woman has more erogenous zones than just her breasts and vagina. Explore with her, and discover where she’s most responsive. Kiss, stroke, or caress each body part. Ask, “How does this feel? Does it make you tingle? What would make you feel even more tingly-if I caressed less or more?” Remember that although it’s good to work toward climax, the journey is pretty unbelievable too.

4. Understand a wife’s definition of satisfaction.
“I don’t get it, Gary,” Doug told me at a conference. “I do everything I can think of in bed, but Janet doesn’t usually have an orgasm.”

“Does that bother Janet?”

“No. She seems content. I don’t get that either.”

“That’s because many women are still satisfied with sex, even when they don’t have an orgasm.”

Doug stared blankly at me. “Huh?”

Husbands, if you want to satisfy your wife, shift your definition of satisfaction. Of course, wives love to climax (who doesn’t?), but they can enjoy the lovemaking experience even when they don’t reach that place.

Many women enjoy the sensuality of cuddling, kissing, and touching every bit as much as they enjoy the thrill of a climax. Women’s sexual pleasure occurs on many levels other than simply orgasm.

5. Understand, accept, and appreciate sexual peaks.
Most men reach their sexual peak in their late teens or early twenties. Most women reach theirs a decade or more later. Often when a woman is in her thirties and forties her sexual desire becomes stronger, sometimes insatiable. And as a man ages, his emotional side increases. Through each stage, couples grow and learn more about each other and become more patient and sensitive to each other’s needs. This is God’s blessing to us, because it allows a couple’s sex life greater longevity and duration.

6. Understand the different kinds of sex.
So often couples feel the pressure to have “perfect” sex-complete with earthquake, fireworks, and multiple orgasms. Not every time you have sex will be a “bell ringer.” And that’s okay, because you’re both connecting. Sometimes sex will be a quickie to meet the need of the moment. Sometimes it will be functional sex, or just because sex, when you think, I’m not in the mood, but my spouse needs me right now. Sometimes it may be comfort sex, when life has brought devastation and the only comfort and security is to be found in the arms of your spouse as a lover. You’ll be ahead when you understand that the different kinds of sex point to the ultimate reason for sex: the relationship. The goal is not whether you end with a climax. The goal is that you’re connecting as a couple.

7. But make passionate sex the main kind.
Don’t rush. In a sex survey we conducted recently, we asked women what they hated about sex. Rushed sex ranked number five. When you have a solid foundation and you’ve spent years growing together and discovering, then you want to have a lot of variety. But a woman who is repeatedly unsatisfied, who senses that her husband’s pleasure always comes before hers, can feel used and empty. She wants to experience the whole spectrum of sex-the physical, emotional, spiritual, relational. We aren’t saying rushed or quickie sex is wrong. But sex can’t be rushed all the time. That would be like eating nothing but fast food. Going through the local fast food drive-through for a chili dog and onion rings every once in a while isn’t a problem, but your health would suffer if you did it every meal. Make your goal pleasurable sex that satisfies both of you.

8. Communicate what type of sex you need.
If you think you’re going to have a quickie and your spouse is expecting a long, passionate encounter, both of you will probably end up frustrated. Clarify your expectations. Women need to prepare mentally for sex. If a wife knows she’s headed for quickie sex, she can mentally prepare for that, including the realization that she may not climax. Most of the time she’ll still enjoy it, even if she doesn’t have the same outcome as her husband.

9. Learn your spouse’s sexual triggers.
We often joke about his-and-hers sexual triggers. Usually we say that men have one sexual trigger: everything. Women are a bit more complex. But seriously, because men are more visually stimulated, a man can become aroused by seeing his wife naked, undressing, or wearing something provocative. Typically, women are not that way. So a husband needs to discover what his wife’s sexual triggers are.

A wife may be a “touch me” girl: she likes hugs and caresses. She may be a “tell me” girl: she likes affirmation and verbal foreplay. She may be a “listen to me and share with me” girl: she opens up after connecting with her husband through conversation. She may be a “doing” girl: she appreciates it when he picks up messes and helps with housework. She may be a “spiritual food” girl: she becomes open to sex after connecting with him through prayer, reading Scripture, and discussing spiritual matters.

10. Practice the fine art of appreciation.
There’s a part of each of us that likes it when our mate is happy with our performance, insight, or advice. We long to hear, “You did a good job,” or “You’ve worked so hard this week; I want to take you out for dinner so you don’t have to cook.” Sincere verbal appreciation motivates us. Overwhelm your spouse with appreciation, and watch sexual desire increase.

11. Make each other a priority.
Multitudes of sex therapists and marriage counselors name fatigue as the number one enemy of sexual intimacy. When couples are worn out, sex is one of the first things to go. If sex enters our minds-even fleetingly-we think, I’d really like to have sex, but when do I have the time and the energy?

We can push sex to the side and claim it’s “just for a season.” But pretty soon, that season turns into a pattern. That’s when it becomes ingrained in the heart and we become blind to what we’re doing. Of all sexual issues, exhaustion is the one over which we have the most control. How? By reprioritizing, working less, saying no to outside activities that don’t further the marriage, or asking for help. Carve out time each week just to relax and have fun with each other.

Grab your calendars, sit down with your spouse, and talk through your schedules. Ask each other these questions: What is an absolute priority? What feels like an absolute priority but really isn’t? What can we get rid of, at least for now? What is the best day to set aside as a time for just the two of us to have sex, to have fun, and enjoy each other? Get yourselves back to remembering, Oh yeah! This is really fun!

12. Say “Why not?”
When our young grandson asks for something, I (Barb) love to respond with “Why not?” He asks, “Can I have a Popsicle?” and I answer, “Why not?” He understands the response so well that he’s begun to mimic me: “Why not, Gaga?” I love that because in a sense I’m telling him that I’m his greatest cheerleader. Anything he wants, I affirm.

You know what? That’s how I want to be in my marriage. Don’t you? I want to be my spouse’s cheerleader and affirmer.

What if you started to say “Why not?” to your spouse? Let’s say your husband calls you and announces, “I’ll meet you at home; we’ll enjoy some lunch-and each other.” Instead of lamenting the lost opportunity to run an errand, respond, “Why not?” Or when your wife e-mails you and announces, “The kids are going to be at sports practice for two hours. If you come home early, I’ll make it worth your while,” don’t think of that backlog of paperwork on your desk. Respond, “Why not?”

Give yourself permission to enjoy sex. Be open to pleasing your lover. Take on a “Why not?” attitude.

13. Keep practicing!
Sex stirs the craving for more sex. Lovemaking elevates the brain chemicals associated with desire. So as we decide to have sex and find we enjoy our time of lovemaking, our libidos increase, often leading to an increased yearning to have sex more often. What could be more fun and exciting than that?

Earlier, I had purchased ingredients to make chili. Among them, cheap beer. For me, that would be Pabst Blue Ribbon.

There were a couple left over from making that delicious batch of comfort food, which was well worth the extra effort. So, not recollecting to have ever tried a PBR – at least not in many years – I opened one up.

Wow…

First sip of a PBR in a ~very~ long time.

It was a 16oz “Tall Boy,” and so, not having a larger capacity glass, I poured, and drank it from a jar.

Naturally, your nose goes in the opening as you put it to your mouth for that first sip, and you breathe in some of the brew’s smell.

It was like I was 17 again, and down at the creek, enjoying a cold beer after school.

I’ll probably always remember the first case of beer I ever purchased. It was shortly after Coors had decided to sell East of the Mississippi.

My family lived in a “dry” city in a “dry” county, which meant that, aside from paying an outrageous price to a remote bootlegger atop the mountain, the nearest beer store was in a wet county, about a 45 minutes drive, one way.

My brother and I were forerunners of the modern “latchkey kids,” since at the time, our folks were attending graduate school.

I was in luck that day, having planned for the event several weeks ahead, since neither Dad nor Mom would be in until much later. So, I fired up the old white Pontiac station wagon, and proceeded toward the Interstate highway which would take me nearest my destination – W’s Package Store – and hoped Daddy wouldn’t check the odometer. He had a strange habit of doing that whenever he let me use that car, or any car.

As I drove down the highway, I was eager and confident, though not nervous as some of my peers were. I’ve never been a “fraidy cat” type. I guess that’s partly one reason why I volunteered for military service. At least I didn’t spend my senior summer year on a Vietnamese vacation, though I was certainly fully expecting to do so. War sucks. Cowardice sucks harder.

An AM radio was my solitary companion on the trek as I had firmly planted myself on the blue vinyl bench seats. It was most definitely not luxury material by any stretch of the imagination. Eight-way heated leather is really the only way to go.

Upon my arrival, I strode in with an air of confidence, and made no attempt to hide myself from the clerk, or the few others in the store. I’ve always been an adventurous type, and particularly enjoy a challenge, as most adventurers do. Perhaps that’s why I still keep a “Go Bag” to this day – though I should probably check the underwear in it. There’s a high likelihood it doesn’t fit any more.

I never intended on going down there to purchase just one lousy six-pack. That’d be nothing but a waste of time, effort, and energy. No, a case was definitely what was called for. And not just one brand and type, but four! After all, one must – or, at least should – have an expanded taste. So, Budweiser, St. Pauli Girl, Miller, and Coors it was. Budweiser because it was Budweiser, and touted as “The King of Beers,” and a competitor to Miller. It was supposed to be good – with emphasis on “supposed.” St. Pauli Girl because of the busty Bavarian biermaid on the label, and the fact that it was German. After all, who doesn’t like pretty women with lovely and magnificent breasts? Miller because… Hell, I don’t know why – I guess because it’s a working man’s beer. Everyone should know what a miller is. And Coors because of it’s Colorado origin, and therefore Western mystique.

So, having placed all four six-packs on the counter, I reached into my wallet for the cash, and only for a split-second did the thought I might be “carded” enter my mind. Fortunately, that thought perished just as quickly as it entered. Perhaps it vanished more quickly, since I didn’t entertain it. Thoughts are like that. They’re tyrannical. Give ‘em an inch, and they’ll completely take over.

Fortunately, the kind clerk placed my purchase in a box made for such items, and I picked it up, and carted it outside to the station wagon. Whereupon I unrolled the back glass, lowered the tailgate, opened the hidden jumpseat under which rested the spare tire and jack, stashed the case on the floorboard, and covered it with a black poultry curtain material which was formerly a product made by the former company which employed my dad, and closed everything back up. Everything needed to appear tidy and in order, and it did.

As I slid into the driver’s seat, closed the door, then inserted the well-worn key into the ignition and fired up the 350 cu inch engine, instead of feeling proud, I felt rather nonchalant. There was no mystique, no mysterious feeling that overcame me. It was as if I’d purchased gasoline, eggs, milk, or a shirt. To this day, I don’t understand why we Americans are so closed-minded about so many things, beverage alcohol included. We should return to age 18 for beer purchases. The reasoning was, if a young man could be ordered to go off to fight, and possibly die for his country, the least he could do is enjoy a beer, and have the right to vote. Now that most states have 21 as the age of majority, I suppose the next thing they’ll attempt to do is raise the voting age. They’ve certainly made voting much more difficult in the years since I first started voting aged 18, and some think that would be the next “logical” thing to do. Nathan Hale was aged 18 when he graduated Yale, and aged 21 when hanged as a spy by the British in 1776. It was he, whom, according to reliable contemporary sources, was said to have uttered these now-famous words: “I am so satisfied with the cause in which I have engaged, that my only regret is that I have not more lives than one to offer in it’s service.”

But as I steered the car toward home, it wasn’t Nathan Hale that I was thinking of. It was getting the beer hidden, keeping it hidden, and cool. Somehow, the idea of stashing a case of beer under the house, or in the backyard storage hut, only to have it discovered by my parents wasn’t exactly appealing. So naturally, the creek was the first place that came to mind. After all, my dad told me of the times in his youth when his poverty-stricken family would store milk and select perishables in a specially prepared box in the creek. Dads probably never know – only until much later – how their kids interpret the things they tell them. And, perhaps that’s best.

The road by the creek ran behind our house, and was unpaved, so I drove slowly over the gravel to not stir up much dust. Fortunately also, there weren’t any houses nearby. That’s not the case now. Seems that doctors, lawyers, and others like to build near the woods and creek. I hope they don’t give their, or others’ kids grief about playing on the creek. Boys and girls of all ages should have the opportunity to explore and play in nature undisturbed by adult intervention. Discovery and freedom are still our friends… if we’ll let them be.

I parked the station wagon, unloaded my cargo, still covered with the black poultry curtain material, and carefully made my way down to the creek’s edge, where a well-worn trail led to a bluff, where also a large hardwood tree spanned the creek. And though it had fallen some time ago, it hadn’t deteriorated to the point where it was unsafe to use, and we crossed it regularly.

Under the bluff overhang was a sandy area which in places was high enough to stand under, and the sooty rock roof was testimony that over the years, others had been there. We regaled ourselves with fantastic tales how Indians and others may have lived or sought refuge there. And it was there in a shallow alcove in the creek along the bank where I stashed the case of beer, covered and tucked it under with the black poultry curtain material, set a few rocks atop it to ensure it didn’t mysteriously “float up,” and fixed larger limbs adjacent it to appear as natural as possible, and provide a visual tamper alert system. Gotta’ have system, don’t you know? Seems systems & solutions are the going things these days, and I had one then as a teen. It was also environmentally and ecologically friendly (aka “green”), simple, and efficient. Just don’t ask me what I did with the bottles and cans, because I have plausible deniability. That’s important too, because ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be a spy. But I can’t talk about my time in the CIA. Besides, they’d deny it anyway. It’s a matter of National Security, don’t you know. But we do know Valerie Plame was outed. And that’s a dog-gone shame, because you know where that got us.

But, hiding a case of beer is a matter of personal security, not national. And I did it well.

And so, for several weeks thereafter, each day after school, as was my custom, I would take off down to the creek and enjoy a cold beer.

While I’ve never been an aficionado of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, tasting and smelling it as I did brought up those memories. Odd, isn’t it, how things like that can trigger a memory?